In the GAA, certain names endure for the brilliance they displayed between the white lines. Rackard. Mackey. Ring. Keher. Canning. Carey. The list of legends who have illuminated our games is long and ever-growing. All the more remarkable, then, that one of the most respected and recognisable figures in Gaelic games is a man who…
The offices of the Iona Institute on Merrion Square, Dublin, were the scene of a major security operation this week after director David Quinn opened a letter containing white powder and a menacing message that read “Happy Anthrax.” The letter, which named both Quinn and fellow Iona board member Breda O’Brien, triggered a full Garda…
How Sr Fiona Pryle has spent decades battling for women’s safety The numbers are stark. Gardai were called to more than 65,000 incidents of domestic abuse last year, a 45% rise in just four years. But the numbers don’t tell the whole story, behind those figures are lives marked by fear, isolation, and tragedy.…
As the need for Padre Pio ministry in Ireland grows with continued interest in and reverence for the saint, the Irish Capuchin Franciscan Friars have created a new Padre Pio Apostolate Team. Their hope is to continue the work of Fr Bryan Shortall, the former National Director of Padre Pio Ministry in Ireland. A publication…
As September 23 approaches, Catholics across the world prepare to commemorate St Pio of Pietrelcina, known affectionately as Padre Pio, a 20th Century mystic whose reputation for holiness continues to confound sceptics and inspire generations. Most Catholics know Padre Pio’s story: born Francesco Forgione in 1887 in Pietrelcina, Italy, received the stigmata in 1918, died…
When I think about the saints most beloved by modern Catholics, Padre Pio tops the list. His weathered face and brown Capuchin habit are iconic. His remarkable personal story, his strong-willed personality and the intensity of his spiritual life are absolutely captivating. But here’s the thing: I think most people get the reason this saint…
The Mercy Global Action (MGA), the justice arm of Mercy International Association (MIA) celebrated this month the graduation of the Cohort Four and the start of the Cohort Five’s journey of the Mercy Emerging Leaders Fellowship (MELF) Programme. The graduation ceremony took place in the in Mercy International Centre, Baggot Street on September 3, while…
To celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is to remember and renew an epochal event that profoundly shaped the history of Christianity. The anticipated announcement of Pope Leo XIV’s visit, soon to be made official by the Holy See, strengthens our faith and invites us to rediscover the treasure handed down to…
In towns, villages, and parishes all across Ireland, the beating pulse of the community is the local GAA club. Whether in the barren rural landscapes of northwest Donegal or the bustling, multicultural centres of Dublin, Cork, and Belfast, the GAA sits at the heart of it all. But in a time of great change across…
The call for reform in the Catholic Church is as old as the Church itself. Across the centuries, theologians and popes have emphasised that while the deposit of faith remains unchanged, the way it is lived and expressed must be renewed in every age. The French Dominican theologian Yves Congar, writing in 1950 in his…
Renata Steffens